U.S. Correspondent

BEA: We’ll let Oracle deadline expire

news
Oct 26, 20071 min

Oracle had set a Sunday deadline for its $17-per-share acquisition offer; BEA responded with a $21-per-share offer, which Oracle rejected, so BEA is letting the deadline expire

BEA Systems reiterated on Friday that it would not accept Oracle’s $17 per share acquisition bid, and also said it would allow a deadline Oracle had set for Sunday 5 p.m. PDT to expire.

In a public statement — just the latest salvo in merger talks that have had a distinctly icy quality — BEA’s vice president of planning and development, William Klein told Oracle President Charles Phillips that the company’s offer was “unacceptable.” BEA has said it would accept a $21 per share bid.

That would result in an $8.3 billion price tag for the company, significantly more than Oracle’s offer, which works out to $6.7 billion. BEA’s stock was trading at about $16.80 per share midday Friday.

“As fiduciaries, our Board cannot endorse a proposal that it has concluded significantly undervalues BEA,” Klein said in the statement. “We therefore assume that your proposal will expire on October 28.”

An Oracle spokeswoman could not immediately be reached for comment.